Emily Zoladz | MLive.comGrand Rapids City Hall, 300 Monroe Ave. NW, got new windows last year, and a new roof is being installed now. A city budget proposal for the coming fiscal year includes $810,000 to upgrade elevator controls in the 9-story building.

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Ever had to wait a long time to ride up an elevator at Grand Rapids City Hall? The wait time should be shorter and energy use more efficient after an $810,000 upgrade to existing elevator controls in the nine-story building at 300 Monroe Ave. NW, city administrators said.

A proposed 2012-2013 city budget earmarks almost 40 percent of $2.1 million in spending from a capital reserve fund for the elevator job. City Manager Greg Sundstrom said the expense is necessary to avoid an elevator disfunction that effectively would shut down the building.

“If you are here on a weekend, you’re never sure if you’ll make it up or down,” Sundstrom said. “We have deferred this expense for at least a decade, I would say. I fear we don’t have a choice.

Sundstrom said sporadic reliability of the existing elevators that run up the center of the building should improve. The new controls also should be more energy-efficient and easier to maintain, saving an estimated $30,000 annually.